From KTSM: UTEP welcomes new students to campus

EL PASO, TX (KTSM) — The school year is kicking off Monday morning for a lot of students around the Borderland and UTEP rolled out the welcome mat on Sunday.

Incoming freshmen, transfer students and even new faculty and staff had a chance to officially get a welcome to UTEP at the Don Haskins Center.

“We are welcoming all the new UTEP Miners to our campus,” said UTEP President Diana Natalicio.

The convocation gave a brief history of the university and aimed to inspire the new batch of students to aim high and to dream big.

Student’s like engineering major Hugo Rico.

“It was great, honestly,” he said. “It was very cultured and I met a lot of different people. It gets me really excited to start here at UTEP.”

Rico, a native El Pasoan, said becoming a Miner was a natural choice, several of his family members are alumni.

“They gave me a lot of insight,” said Rico.

But others are coming to El Paso and UTEP for all over the country.

William Roman-Ros, a business major, is from Houston and has high hopes for his time at the university.

“Just get a really good education and at the same time become fluent in Spanish while I am here. Might as well,” said Roman Ros.

“I think it is important that students get started quickly and hit the ground running,” said Natalicio. “This is a very special time in their lives and it’s all too brief. You might as well get started on the first day, right?”

Natalicio said every start to the year is special; .but there is something that set’s this year apart from the rest.

UTEP is celebrating its 100th anniversary.

“You only get to do that ones in 100 years, so you have to get it right,” she explained. “We are working really hard at that and enjoying ourselves in the doing.”

Now these UTEP Miners are ready to start their college careers.

“It’s not a huge school; it’s about 22.000 students, so it is a really nice community to get into. Very supportive,” said Roman-Ros.

And look forward to their futures.

“To dream big and to keep dreaming big,” said Rico.

Other Borderland schools are also starting class tomorrow, including EPISD and YISD.